nVidia’s Risky 3D Optimization Gamble

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A few months back, we uncovered some very questionable optimizations that nVidia put into its Detonator driver to improve 3DMark03 scores. One of these optimizations involved adding extra clip planes, so that the card could avoid drawing certain parts of the scene’s sky, which used a pixel shader operation.

During our ongoing investigation of this issue we’ve uncovered some specific answers, and nVidia has released new drivers that seem to address these problems. However, we’re still left with many more questions. Where does an optimization cross the line from being valid into being either unfair or a downright cheat? And what about detecting and optimizing for particular applications? Are these actions inherently evil?

Because of the wide range of possible optimizations, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer to this vexing question. But there are some common-sense principles that can guide an analysis of these optimizations. It all comes down to whether these machinations help actual games and real gamers, or simply inflate benchmark scores.

In this article we’ll analyze when optimization make sense, and can be considered fair, and when they cross the line. Along the way we’ll explore what nVidia is doing to ensure its optimizations stay on the fair side of the line.

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